Door lock keeper



March 22, 1960 J, MARTENS EI'AL 2,929,652

DOOR LOCK KEEPER Filed May 20, 1955 J. 5. MA R TENS. D. 6. BE YE INVENTORS.

United States PatentO DOOR LOCK KEEPER Jack E. Martens, Detroit, and Donald C. Beyer, Dearborn, Mich assignors to Ford Motor Company, Dearborn, Mich, a corporation of Delaware Application May 20, 1955, Serial No. 509,840

Claims. (Cl. 292-341.13)

This invention relates generally to a keeper for a motor vehicle door lock.

An object of the invention is to provide a keeper of the type adapted to be mounted upon a motor vehicle door or body pillar and arranged to be engaged by a toothed rotor of a lock mechanism mounted upon a vehicle door. The. invention provides a construction minimizing the impact load and consequent wear and deterioration between the teeth on the rotor and the teeth on the keeper. In an embodiment of the invention, a bearing sleeve is mounted upon the shank of the rotor bolt and is adapted 'to be engaged by a bearing plate mounted upon the keeper. impact loads due to closingthe door, and par- ;ticularly when vertical misalignments exist between the rotor bolt and the keeper, are taken by the engagement between the bearing sleeve and the bearing plate rather than between the teeth on the rotor bolt and the teeth on the keeper as in conventional constructions. With this arrangement the teeth need onlyperform the function of holding the door in closed position and consequently the wear thereon is greatly reduced. The bearing sleeve and bearing plate cooperate with a slidable wedge mounted upon the keeper and engageable with a semi-cylindrical casing carried by the lock plate and partially surrounding the rotor bolt.

Another object of the invention is to provide a door lock keeper of the type mentioned above in which the keeper cooperates with the rotor bolt to prevent possible disengagement of the keeper and rotor bolt which might occur during an accident as the result of relative longitudinal distortion or movement between the door and the pillar. With the construction of the present invention, the bearing plate vertically overlaps some of the teeth on the rotor bolt, the latter being recessed to provide clearance for the plate, so that an interference exists which prevents the rotor bolt from being moved longitudinally an amount sufficient to disengage the teeth of the rotor bolt from the teeth of the keeper. A safety feature is thus provided. The arrangement whereby the bearing plate on the keeper engages the bearing sleeve on the rotor bolt provides a maximum overlap between the plate and the rotor bolt teeth, greater than wouldbe possible were it necessary to leave clearance between the bearing plate and the rotor bolt.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will be made more apparent as this description proceeds, particularly when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure l is a fragmentary view of a motor vehicle door or body pillar provided with a door lock keeper mechanism of the present invention, partially in section and taken on the plane indicated by the line 11 of Figure 2. Figure 2 is a vertical cross sectional view taken on the plane indicated by the line 22 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is an elevational view of the keeper alone, with the bearing plate removed.

Figure 4 is an elevational view of the bearing plate .alone.

2,929,652 Patented Manzz, 1,960

pillar 12 by means of three screws 13.

The keeper assembly 11 comprises a frame 14, a bearing plate 16, and a slidable wedge 17. The frame 14 is preferably a die casting and, as best seen in Figure 3, is generally C-shaped in elevation, having an upper portion 18, a lower portion 19 and an end wall 21 integrally connected by means of a flat base 22. The lower portion 19 of the keeper frame is recessed at 23 beneath the surface of the upper portion 18 and end wall 21. The upper and lower portions 18 and 19 of the keeper frame are provided with countersunk holes 24 to receive the screws 13, which extend through openings in the pillar 12 and threadedly engage, a tapped plate 26 on the opposite side of the pillar to rigidly support the keeper frame thereon.

side of the C-shaped keeper frame 14.

The lower portion 19 of the keeper frame is provided with a pair of teeth 31 projecting integrally upwardly therefrom. The bearing plate 16 is shaped to correspond generally to the shape of the lower portion 19 of the keeper frame and is formed with conical sections 32 fitting into the countersunk holes 24 in the frame to locate the plate on the frame and to receive the heads of the screws 13. The plate fits into the recess 23 in the keeper frame, and the upper edge 33 of the plate overlaps the teeth 31 and projects a slight distance above the teeth, and is formed with a rounded nose portion .34 for a purpose to be described more in detail hereinafter.

The keeper is arranged to engage a rotor bolt .36 formed with sixequally spaced peripheral teeth 37. As best seen in Figure 2, the rotor bolt 36 has a stepped shank 38 projecting through an opening 39 formed in the lock plate 41 secured to the end wall 42 of the door. A bushing 43 surrounds the shank of the rotor bolt adjacent the flange 44 formed in the lock plate to form a bearing permitting rotation ofthe rotor bolt. A ratchet 46 is nonrotatably mounted upon the shank of the rotor bolt and the end of the shank is riveted or spun over the ratchet 46 to formv a unitary assembly. The face of the ratchet 46 engages an embossment on the lock plate 41 to form a. thrust bearing therefor.

The enlarged portion of the shank 38 of the rotor bolt 36 is embraced by a hardened steel sleeve 47. One end of the sleeve 47 abuts the enlarged'fiange of the rotor bolt carrying the teeth 37 while the opposite end thereof abuts the end of the annular flange 44 formed on the lock plate, thus cooperating with the ratchet 46 to locate the rotor bolt against axial movement relative to the l ck plate.

An abutment member in the form of a semicylindrical sheet metal casing 48 is mounted upon the lock plate 41. A series of circumferentially spaced tabs 49 are formed on the periphery of the casing 38 and project through openings in the lock plate 41, being riveted thereto. The casing 48 has an integral end flange 51 adjacent the face of the rotor bolt 36, and is piloted thereon by means of an annular flange 52 struck out from the end wall '51 of the casing and rotatably engaging an aperture 53 formed in the rotor bolt.

It will be apparent from the foregoing construction that when the vehicle door is-closed, engagement will be I a 3 a. made between the hardened bearing sleeve 47 carried by the rotor bolt shank and the bearing plate 16 mounted upon the keeper. In addition, engagement will be made between the semicylindrical casing 48 mounted upon the lock plate and the slidable wedge 17 carried by the keeper. The door is thus properly centered and guided into its predetermined closed position, with the slidable wedge 17 taking up any play which may exist in a vertical direction.

In the event the door is misaligned with the vehicle body, as for example being slightly lower than proper, the bearing sleeve 47 on the rotor bolt will engage the rounded cam surface 34 at the nose of the upper edge 33 of the bearing plate 16 to lift the door to its proper elevation. This is accomplished without placing any stress upon the rotor teeth 37 or the keeper teeth 31, and the teeth need only perform their primary function of retaining the door in either its locked or safetyposition. This construction thus minimizes tooth wear and damage which often results in a conventional construction in which the teeth bear the impact load and are often subjected to severe stresses due to door misalignments. With this construction, however, the sliding engagements between the bearing plate and bearing sleeve and between the semicylindr ical casing and the slidable wedge guide the door to its proper closed position and firmly mainftain the door against movement in a vertical plane while the vehicle is in motion.

It will be noted that the upper portion of the bearing 'plate 16 vertically overlaps the lowermost teeth 37 of the rotor bolt 36. In addition, the bearing plate 16 is located between the teeth 37 and the end wall 42 of the door, so that any tendency of the door to move lengthwise rela- 'tive to the door pillar will result in interference between the bearing plate and the rotor teeth. This forms a safety feature, since collisions or accidents may cause sufficient distortion of the vehicle body to result in a movement of 'the rotor lengthwise of the vehicle, and an extreme movement in this direction would of course result in disengage- 'ment of the rotor and keeper teeth, permitting the door to open. This is prevented in the present instance by the interlock eflected between the rotor teeth and the bearing plate. The engagement of the hearing plate with the bearing sleeve carried by the rotor bolt permits a maximum overlapping or interference between the plate and the rotor teeth to afford as much strength as possible against inadvertent opening.

It will be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the exact construction shown and described,

a but that various changes and modifications maybe made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, as defined in the appended claims;

What is claimed is;

1. A keeper structure adapted to be mounted upon a motor vehicle body for engagement with a rotor having 'a plurality of peripheral teeth, said rotor having a shank rotatably mounted upon a vehicle door, comprising a keeper frame secured to said body beneath said rotor and a 4 a frame lies in a plane normal to the axis of said sleeve, said flange having an inclined edge portion engageable with said bearing sleeve upon the closing of said door and forming an entrant guide centering said keeper and rotor as the door is closed.

4. A keeper structure adapted to be mounted upon a motor vehicle body for engagement with a rotor having a plurality of peripheral teeth, said rotor having a shank rotatably mounted upon the vehicle door, said rotor being partially surrounded by acurved casing mounted upon the vehicle door, comprising a generally C-shaped keeper frame having upper and lower generally horizontal body portions spaced vertically from each other and embracing therebetween said rotor and said casing, meet the body portions of said keeper frame having'a toothed surface engageable with the teeth of said rotor, a wedge, means slidably mounting said wedge upon the upper body portion of said keeper frame for sliding movement in a horizontal direction and engagement with said curvedcasing, the lower body portion of said keeper frame having a vertical flange engageable with the shank of said rotor 'to clamp said rotor shank and easing between said flange and wedge respectively to maintain the vehicle door against vertical movement. a

5. A keeper structure adapted to be mounted upon a motor vehicle body for engagement with a rotor having a plurality of peripheral teeth, said rotor having a shank rotatably mounted upon the'vehicle door, said rotor being partially surrounded by a curved casing mounted upon the vehicle door, comprising a generally G-shaped "keeper frame havi ng upper and lower generally horihaving an upper toothed portion engageable with the teeth of said rotor, said frame also having a generally vertical'flange positioned beneath and slidably engaging the shank of said rotor as the vehicle 'door is closed to guide the door to its closed position and to relieve the teeth on said rotor and keeper frame from, vertical loading. 7

2. The structure defined by claim 1 which 'is'further characterized in that said rotor protrudes outwardly from the end wall of said door and said rotor teeth are spaced from said end Wall, the flange on said keeper frame engaging the shank of'said rotor between the end wall of the door and the rotor teeth and overlapping some of which is further.

characterized in that a bearing sleeve is mounted upon L :theshank. of said rotor, and the flange on said keeper zontal body portions spaced vertically from eachother and embracing therebetween said rotor and said casing,

one of the body portions of said keeper frame having a toothed surface engageable with the teeth of said rotor, a-wedge, means slidably mounting said wedge upon the 'upper body portion of said keeper frame forrsliding moveinent in a horizontal direction and engagement with said curved casing, the lower'body portion of said keeper frame having a vertical flange engageable with the shank of said rotor to clamp said rotor shank and casing between said flange and wedge respectively to maintain the vehicle door against vertical movement, the vertical flange on the lower body portion of the keeper frame extending between the teeth on said rotor and said door and overlapping said last mentioned teeth in a vertical direction to limit relative axial movement between said vehicle door and the adjacent portion of said vehicle body,

"6. The structure defined by claim Swhich is further LcharacteriZed in that said flange is detachably mounted upon the last named body portion of said keeper frame "and vertically overlaps the toothed portion of said keeper frame, the shank of said rotor having a bearing sleeve thereon slidably engageable with said flangetas the door is closed;

7, A keeper structure adapted to be mounted upon a ,motor vehicle body for engagement with a rotor having a plurality of peripheral teeth, said rotor having a shank rotatably mounted upon the vehicle door, said rotor being partially surroundedby a casing mounted upon the vehicle door, comprising a keeper frame having upper and lower generally-horizontal body portions spaced vertically from each other and embracing therebetween said rotor and said casing, one of the body portions of said keeper 'frame having a toothed surface engageable with the teeth of said rotor, a wedge, means slidably mounting said wedge upon the other of said keeper frame body portions for sliding movement in a horizontal direction in engagement with said casing, said one body portion of said keeper frame having a generally vertical flange engageable with the shank of said rotor to clamp said rotor shank and said casing between said flange and wedge respcctively to maintain the vehicle door against vertical 8. A keeper structure adapted to be mounted upon 'a motor vehicle body for engagement with a pair of vertically spaced abutment members mounted upon the vehicle door, comprising a generally C-shaped keeper frame having upper and lower generally horizontal body portions spaced apart vertically and embracing said pair of abutment members, one of said abutment members and one of said body portions having cooperating toothed portions to hold the vehicle door closed, said toothed body portion having a generally vertical flange thereon, the upper edge of said flange being engageable with a portion of said toothed abutment member axially spaced from the toothed portion of the latter, and a wedge slidably mounted upon the other of said body portions for engagement with the other of said abutment members to guide and center said door in its closing movements and to hold the door against movement in a vertical plane when the door is closed.

9. A keeper structure adapted to be mounted upon a motor vehicle body for engagement with a rotor having a plurality of peripheral teeth, said rotor having a shank rotatably mounted upon a vehicle door, comprising a keeper frame secured to said vehicle body in vertically spaced relationship with said rotor, said keeper frame having a generally horizontally extending toothed portion positioned vertically beneath said rotor and engageable with the teeth of said rotor to hold the door closed, said keeper frame also having a generally vertical flange having a generally horizontal upper edge slidably engaging the shank of said rotor as the vehicle door is closed to guide the door to its closed position and to relieve the teeth on said rotor and keeper frame from vertical load.

10. A keeper structure adapted to be mounted upon a motor vehicle body for engagement with a rotor rotatably mounted upon a vehicle door and having a plurality of peripheral teeth thereon, said rotor having an arcuate bearing surface axially spaced from said plurality of peripheral teeth, comprising a keeper frame secured to said body and having a series of teeth successively engageable with successive teeth of said rotor, said keeper frame having a vertical flange overlapping some of said rotor teeth when the latter are in engagement with said keeper teeth to limit relative axial movement between. said rotor and said keeper, said vertical flange being normally axially spaced from said rotor teeth and having an edge portion in bearing engagement with said bearing surface of said rotor.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,074,191 Roethel Mar. 16, 1937 2,231,075 Lakin Feb. 11, 1941 2,246,786 Dall June 24, 1941 2,458,751 Voight Jan. 11, 1949 2,629,620 Roethel Feb. 24, 1953 

